What An Idiot!
by Time Warp
Summary: “Stop staring at me with your mouth hanging open like that.” Syaoran’s first words to Sakura. That’s quite the way to make the ladies like you right? From then on she dispises him. She has to learn to live with his teasing, since he's living with her.
1. That Idiotic Guy: Sakura

What an Idiot! By: Time Warp  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own CCS  
  
Summary: "Stop staring at me with your mouth hanging open like that." That's Syaoran's first words to Sakura. That's quite the way to make the ladies like you right? Not really. From then on she despises him. But she has to learn to live with his constant teasing since he's a foreign exchange student living with her family. S+S E+T  
  
Chapter one: That idiotic guy  
  
What an idiot!  
  
Yes, that was my first thought when I saw him. There he was standing there with that annoying impish smile of his saying, "Stop staring at me with your mouth hanging open like that."  
  
I could tell already, he was going to be a living nightmare! Just the thought of him makes me want to push him down! Just one look makes me want to dash out of the room! Look at him! With his amber eyes, unruly hair (which happens to look like the color of dead leaves), and disgustingly charming smile. I hated him already and he was supposed to stay here. In the house, in my home! Well, my dad's home anyway. But still! I can't stand the fact that I have to see that idiot every single day.  
  
Maybe I should back up a little. My name is Sakura Kinomoto. I am just a regular teenage girl. I have just gotten into high school and I wanted to live it up. It took a lot of studying to pass the entrance exam. I'm not so good at math.. But anyway I had just passed the high school entrance exam so, I was enjoying my summer break and the relief of getting into a good school when my dad, Fujitaka Kinomoto, announced to me and my annoying older brother Touya that we were going to house a foreign exchange student.  
  
What a wonderful idea! I thought. Boy, how wrong I was! But, let's get back to my little tale shall we?  
  
I was so excited about this so-called wonderful news that I called my best friend, Tomoyo, and told her the news. Of course at that time I thought this exchange student was going to be a girl, someone I could chat with until the first light of dawn or hang around with for some genuine fun. But no, I was stuck with him! The court jester of stupid! Oh, I'm getting off topic again aren't I?  
  
Well, where was I? Right, I was calling Tomoyo. Okay, so there I was calling Tomoyo and she thought it was great. It was so great that we decided to go out for lunch. Or maybe we were just hungry? Well, anyway Tomoyo came over to my house a few minutes later and then we left to go to the mall. We were both a little low on cash, so we couldn't go anywhere expensive.  
  
And whom did we meet at the mall restaurant? None other than the infamous Hiiragizawa Eriol, he was a guy who for some reason really makes Tomoyo mad. I don't really get why, he seems perfectly fine to me.  
  
"Good afternoon," Eriol with that mysterious smile. He always seems to be wearing it wherever he goes.  
  
I remember seeing Tomoyo roll her eyes and nonchalantly say, "Do you hear something, Sakura? Because there seems to be an irritating voice in my head."  
  
"Then I suppose you should get your head checked," Eriol joked, "May I sit down?"  
  
"Sure."  
  
"NO!"  
  
Tomoyo and I said both those things at the same time. Eriol chose to take my invitation and sat down next to Tomoyo. Tomoyo looked the other way and scooted as far away from him as much as the booth allowed.  
  
"You wound me," Eriol said with mock sadness.  
  
Tomoyo snorted, "Good, maybe you'd leave me alone then."  
  
Eriol chuckled and ignored Tomoyo's comment. He turned to me and asked, "So, what brings you to the mall?"  
  
"Oh, just lunch," I replied casually. I've always found Eriol easy to talk to. He doesn't tease you whenever you say something, unlike that idiot.  
  
Tomoyo took a sip from her soda and said, "A lunch without annoying pests to bother us, might I add."  
  
Eriol smiled and said, "Good thing I'm here to protect you from them then."  
  
He reached for some of Tomoyo's French fries. Tomoyo slapped his hand away and said, "Get your own, you moocher."  
  
Eriol laughed and said, "It seems I've over stayed my welcome. I'll leave since I'm hungry anyway."  
  
"Good riddance!" Tomoyo called after him.  
  
Well anyway, I spent the next few days wondering what the new exchange student would be like. I didn't really have to wait long to find out. On the second to last day of summer break he arrived to make my life a living nightmare.  
  
All right, I'll admit it. I didn't really think, 'what an idiot,' when I first met him. I really wish I had though. And I am ashamed to admit that I thought he was sort of cute. Well, that is until he opened his big mouth and said, "Stop staring at me with your mouth hanging open like that."  
  
From that moment on I knew I loathed him. 


	2. Shocking News: Syaoran

What an Idiot! By: Time Warp  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own CCS  
  
Summary: "Stop staring at me with your mouth hanging open like that." That's Syaoran's first words to Sakura. That's quite the way to make the ladies like you right? Not really. From then on she despises him. But she has to learn to live with his constant teasing since he's a foreign exchange student living with her family. S+S E+T  
  
Chapter two: Shocking News  
  
Sidestep, punch, sidekick. Oh.. Or is it sidestep, sidekick and then punch? I don't really remember what I do when I train. I just do the training. Sort of like I go into a trance when I train. I don't know. it's actually sort of strange. I can do the training right, but when I think about what I did while training I can't really remember exactly what I did, probably because it's so boring to do. It's like when you do math homework, you don't remember everything you did for every single problem, you just do them. That's what training is like for me. It's just something I do daily.  
  
But then again, that day wasn't exactly a regular day. Sure, I did my training just like any other day. And yeah, my four older sisters pestered me, yet again, but that was a day I will not forget. Not for a long time anyway. You see that was the day I found out I was going to Japan. And OH BOY was I shocked!  
  
It all started when I had just finished my training for the day. I was sitting down trying to remember just what I did during the training when I was called to my mother's room. Let me tell you now, it's usually not a good thing when I'm called to my mother's room. I'm usually in trouble or my mother tells me something I'm sure to not be happy with.  
  
And yes, it was one of the two. In fact it was the second one.  
  
I remember silently walking in. Though that doesn't really matter. My mother can tell whether or not a person entered her room regardless of the amount of noise they make. I just enter silently as a sign of respect. I have always been taught to respect my elders, which is sort of ironic because- wait, I'm getting off topic here.  
  
The moment she gave me that pleasant smile I knew that something was up. You see, when my mother smiles like that it usually means she's made a plan, a plan involving her children. And since I was the only child of hers that was in the room that meant this plan involved me.  
  
She gave me look motherly look and said, "Syaoran, you have just graduated from junior high school, correct?"  
  
I nodded dumbly waiting to see where this conversation was going.  
  
"I think things have been getting a little too hectic here."  
  
"I guess," That was my answer.  
  
"Especially for you, son. I think you need a small break. After all, you are going to be taking over the responsibilities of watching over the family and our company in a few years," My mother said to me.  
  
'Am I going on a vacation or something?' I remember wondering that. No such luck.  
  
"That's why I decided to sign you up for the foreign exchange program."  
  
WHAT THE???? Oh no, I did not want to do something as stupid as going to another country to learn things I could learn here!  
  
I stood there concocting elaborate plans of escaping my fate or ways to say no without making her angry.  
  
"Is this good?" my mother asked.  
  
I remember thinking, 'Hell no!'  
  
Unfortunately, the words that came out of my mouth were, "Yes Mother."  
  
"Good, you may go pack for your trip."  
  
WHY ME??????? Stupid moron!!!! Why didn't I just say "no"? It's not that hard. You just take the letter n and the letter o and put them together! That makes no! Then why in the world did I just say, 'Yes mother.' Why? Why? Why?  
  
So that's how I was condemned to life with strangers in Japan.  
  
All right, I admit it. It isn't as bad as it seemed to me then, but what can I say? I am a person, a creature of moods. Just like everyone else. I remember packing to leave. It was incredibly annoying since my sisters kept on pestering me.  
  
They said things like, "Xiao Lang, you're so lucky!" or  
  
"I want to go to Japan!"  
  
"Bring me present!!!"  
  
"Make sure to write!"  
  
Can you imagine just how annoying that is? They are older then me too! I often find myself wondering why I was more serious if I was younger. I guess I get it from mother. My father smiled and laughed a lot more than my mother, but he still was serious when he needed to be. So I don't think my sisters got to be so strange from him.  
  
Either way, I was in a bad mood and they weren't helping.  
  
"Will you just leave me alone?" I remember hissing that dangerously to them.  
  
If you know me well enough, you would know when a do that its not a good sign. Knowing that, my sisters left. And that's when my cousin, Meiling, came in. Meiling is just as bad as my sisters are if not worse. At that time the only good thing about leaving Hong Kong and going to Japan was the fact that I was getting away from my annoying siblings.  
  
"Xiao Lang? Are you leaving soon? If you are then we need to spend as much time together as possible!" Meiling said. I swear, she really gets on my nerves at times and this was one of those times.  
  
"Look Meiling, I'm leaving tomorrow since that school. what is it called again? Oh whatever! Anyway, I'm going to be there for a while, so I have quite many things to pack and I don't need you pestering me right now," I told her harshly.  
  
To keep her from bothering me later I said, "It will take me all night to pack, so don't bother me later either."  
  
Meiling gave me an annoyed look, "Okay, okay. I just wanted to spend sometime with you before you left."  
  
I remember sighing, "Look, I'm sorry, but I'm just a little annoyed right now."  
  
Meiling smirked, "I can tell, dear cousin. You stick in the mud! If you can't spend any time with me now, then you better spend a lot time with me when you get back. Oh yeah, and write a lot! Deal?"  
  
Meiling may be annoying, but she happens to be a good cousin. She did improve my mood a little, but not that much.  
  
So after that night I left. Other stuff did happen, but I'm not going to bore you with the details. Those things aren't interesting and they would be a waste of time to banter on about.  
  
The plane ride was pretty much uneventful though what happened at airport was something that I was particularly annoyed about. Apparently the Kinomoto family had forgotten I was coming that day, so I had to take a cab to their house. Usually I wouldn't be so huffy about something as trivial as that, but that day it was raining- HARD.  
  
How could I have known about the rain? I had just came from Hong Kong and its not as if I would have thought to bring an umbrella if I didn't know if it were going to rain. And for that reason I didn't have an umbrella.  
  
So there I was- cold and miserable, I wouldn't have been so rude if I wasn't. Sadly enough, I was. I stood on the doorstep of a strangely yellow house soaking wet and ready to snap at the first person I saw. And guess who should open the door and become my victim? Why, it was Miss Kinomoto Sakura.  
  
She stood there staring at me with her mouth hanging open. The first thing that came to my mind was, 'what is she? A fish?'  
  
Then I said the next thing that came to me, "Stop staring at me with your mouth hanging open like that."  
  
She gave me a stunned look then glared at me.  
  
It was then I realized something.  
  
Maybe my stay in Japan was going to be better than I had originally thought. 


	3. The Boy the Monster Hated: Touya

What an Idiot!  
  
By: Time Warp  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own CCS  
  
Summary: "Stop staring at me with your mouth hanging open like that." That's Syaoran's first words to Sakura. That's quite the way to make the ladies like you right? Not really. From then on she despises him. But she  
has to learn to live with his constant teasing since he's a foreign  
exchange student living with her family. S+S E+T  
  
Author's note: I've decided not to use any Japanese words in this story, so if Touya calls Sakura or Syaoran any names it will be an English translation of the name.  
  
Chapter three: The Boy the Monster Hated  
  
I was irritated. No, I wasn't irritated. I was downright annoyed.  
  
First of all, I was supposed to pick up that exchange student from the airport. The only problem with that was I wrote down the wrong gate number, so I spent two hours wandering from gate to gate, hoping it was the right one. I never did find the right one. Second of all, it was raining cats and dogs! I didn't have an umbrella so when I left the airport I had to dash through the rain to get to my car. And if you know airport parking then you would know that I got soaked to the bone. Lastly, I had to sit in my car to drive so it got very wet. Not to mention it was incredibly uncomfortable.  
  
I was having a horrible day.  
  
The first thing I did when I got home was telling the monster to get me a towel. She of course walked up to me, handed me towel, glared venomously, and then stomp on my foot, HARD.  
  
She of course does that every time I call her monster, but this time she stomped harder than usual. She seemed very mad when I came home and I just added to her anger when I called her monster. That doesn't matter though. The look on her face is priceless when I call her that so I always do.  
  
Anyway, I was standing there cradling my poor foot while balancing on the other while she glared at me. Though I wasn't very fazed by her angry stare, she may glare, but she very bad at doing at it.  
  
Just at that instant he came down the stairs asking, "Hey Kinomoto! Who was that?"  
  
I switched to the suspicious big bother mode. I glared at him. He calmly looked me in the eye and walked down the stairs. Now I'm told that I have an intimidating glare, so that boy sure had guts. I had to admit I was surprised. But I didn't show it; after all he could have been a horny boy after my little sister. And there was no way I give my little sister away to horny little boys who would take her away from me.  
  
So I glared venomously with all my might.  
  
The monster rolled her eyes and said in an aggravated voice, "Stop it, big brother! He's just the stupid exchange student that dad told us about."  
  
That left me relieved. She didn't like him. That was good. That meant I wouldn't pledge war against him. That meant he wouldn't live in fear.  
  
He gave a devious smile, "My, my, Kinomoto is being so rude to me. And I'm a guest no less! I wonder how you're like to people you hate."  
  
The monster glared, "You don't have to wonder! I hate you!"  
  
He mocked sadness, "How cruel! I think I'm going to cry!"  
  
She gave her angriest glare, "You're such an idiot!"  
  
A soft smile left his lips, "You know, Kinomoto I wouldn't mind being an idiot."  
  
That not only confused the monster, but me as well.  
  
The monster looked confused for a moment, and then said, "You're so infuriating!"  
  
It was that instance that my father's voice asked, "Touya, why are you so wet?"  
  
I turned around to see him standing behind me shaking an umbrella in attempt to get rid of some access water.  
  
I chose to ignore my younger sibling and the boy she was arguing with and answered, "Oh, I got caught in the rain without an umbrella."  
  
"I see, Touya you should start carrying a spare umbrella in your car and take a shower before you get sick," he answered in a fatherly tone.  
  
I guess to a parent it doesn't matter how old their child got. They were still their child and would always be their child.  
  
"Yeah, I'm gonna go take a shower and I'll start carrying an extra umbrella. I've learned my lesson," I answered.  
  
He gave that comforting smile he always give, "That's good."  
  
He looked behind me, "Are you the new exchange student?"  
  
The boy bowed respectfully and said, "Oh, yes I am. Thanks for letting me stay at your home."  
  
He smiled and said, "No problem. My I ask you your name?"  
  
"Oh, of course. I'm Li Syaoran."  
  
"It's a pleasure to meet you Li."  
  
"Oh no, the pleasure is all mine."  
  
And so that was how I met Li Syaoran, the boy the monster hated. 


	4. Fairytales: Tomoyo

What an Idiot!

By: Time Warp

Disclaimer: I don't own CCS

Summary: "Stop staring at me with your mouth hanging open like that." That's Syaoran's first words to Sakura. That's quite the way to make the ladies like you right? Not really. From then on she despises him. But she has to learn to live with his constant teasing since he's a foreign exchange student living with her family. S+S E+T

Chapter four: Fairytales

I remember waking up that morning. The alarm played the tune of one of my favorite songs, Catch You Catch Me, waking me up at precisely six' o clock in the morning. The first thing I did was get up and take a shower. I, of course, followed my normal morning routine:

1.6' o clock- Wake up, take a shower and get dressed.

2.6:30- Go to the music room and have my daily vocal lesson.

3.7' o clock- Have breakfast with my mother.

4.7:30- Go to Sakura's house and walk to school.

5.8' o clock- the bell at school rings.

Now, that particular day was different then most. Yes, like I was saying, I did wake up, take a shower and get dressed. But the first of a few, but significant, differences happened at my daily vocal lesson.

At the end of it my teacher said, "Tomoyo, you're not performing as well as usual. Are you stressed about something?"

She was absolutely correct. I was stressed out about a few things. First of all, there was an upcoming singing competition and I was very worried about it. Second, today was the first day of high school and I wanted to make a good impression with all my teachers and classmates. And lastly, since it was the first day of high school that meant I would that annoying pest Eriol almost everyday!

So in other words, yes, yes I was stressing out.

I only could nod wordlessly at my teacher though.

"Tomoyo," she said softly, "I think you should take a break from singing until the competition. You'll get hoarse at the rate you're going. Do something you enjoy. I know! Instead of the usual vocal practices I give you from homework, I want you to memorize your songs and do something you enjoy. That should help you relax a little."

I nodded, "Thank you. I'll do that."

She smiled and let me leave.

As I was walking down the stairs of my large mansion of a house, I wondered about what I would do to get rid of my stress. I could make outfits, but my mother said my cloth purchases had gotten a little out of hand, so I couldn't do that. I used to tape all my friends everyday, but I got tired of carrying the camera everywhere so I had limited that to special occasions. So I didn't have many ideas.

Breakfast was the same as usual.

Another difference that happened occurred when I arrived at my best friend, Sakura's, house.

You see, when I arrived at her house there was an odd boy standing outside its gates.

I watched as he waited patiently. Then Sakura ran out of the house and up to him.

And then it hit me. I should write a story! That would help me stop stressing out and it would be fun, especially if I based it on Sakura and that mysterious guy who now stood beside her. Yes, I would make a fairytale about how a princess met her prince and fell in love with him.

She would be a princess who was betrothed to a young prince who disappeared when she was so young that she forgot of his existence or of his fallen kingdom. Only to find out on her sixteenth birthday of his existence and she decides to find him after his mother who had also disappeared appears suddenly...

Yes! I would be a fun thing to write since I would base it upon the love scene that was unfurling before me.

At least that was I was thinking that when he said something to her and she glared angrily and yelled, "You idiot!"

I decided I should add something more to the storyline.

The princess, a.k.a. Sakura, would find a fighter, a.k.a. uh, that guy I don't know the name of yet, he would looks just like the prince. She wouldn't feel comfortable around him of course. Though I don't think I would have the princess call the fighter an idiot.

Yes, that would be such an interesting thing to write! I would call it A Little Lost. There would be a really interesting twist where princess Sakura would find out that- wait, I shouldn't give away the entire story. 

After deciding to write A Little Lost, I walked up to Sakura and this mystery guy. After all, I do need a name for the fighter and or prince.

"Good morning Sakura!" I said cheerily.

"Hoe? Tomoyo? Good morning," she replied happily to me, as if the guy that she had just yelled at wasn't standing next to her.

"Oy, Kinomoto, aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?" he asked confidently.

"Ignore him Tomoyo, he's just an annoyance."

"Eh? You're ignoring me? What a way to treat your guests. Well, if you won't introduce me, then I'll have to introduce myself right?" He asked jokingly as he poked at Sakura's arm.

"Dumb idiot! Stop poking me," Sakura muttered as she began to poke his arm as he poked hers.

They stood there for a few minutes poking at each other. Sakura wore a determined annoyed face as the guy just grinned.

"Sakura, if you two don't stop poking at each other we'll be late," I reminded her softly, even though it was an amusing sight to see.

"I agree with your friend, Tomoyo was it? Anyway, we'll be late for our first day of school if we keep this up," he said in an calm controlled tone, "I'm Li Syaoran, I'm an exchange student. It's nice to meet you Tomoyo...?"

I caught the hint and replied, "Daidouji. My name is Daidouji Tomoyo."

He nodded, "Daidouji... Well, then should we get going Kinomoto, Daidouji?

Then the third significant thing happened when we got to school.

I found out I was in the same class as the stupid creep, Eriol.

I added something more to my story. A stupid friend to the figher.

Yes, that day was different then most. Eriol sat beside me smiling an annoying smile. While Sakura frowned deeply as Li Syaoran sat behind her.

'Yes, this say was different than most,' I thought as I carefully watched Sakura and Li in class. If there was strange thing about that guy, Li Syaoran, it was that he was always making fun of Sakura, but was always serious to everyone else.

And then I wrote down a line of my story.

_Sakura suddenly had a small feeling of dislike toward him._

This story was based upon the people around me and how they reacted to eachother. Just like the princess in my little fairytale, Sakura didn't like Li, but that will change if I had anything to do with it.

After all, I am the author and I will push my characters toward the climax of my story.

And maybe I could make reality like a fairytale.

~*~

Ehehe, you could probably see blatant pimping of my other story, called A Little Lost. ^_^;; I was too lazy to make up a new idea for a story. ahahhahahha, anyway please review.


	5. Old Friends: Eriol

.What an Idiot!  
  
By: Time Warp  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own CCS  
  
Summary: "Stop staring at me with your mouth hanging open like that." That's Syaoran's first words to Sakura. That's quite the way to make the ladies like you right? Not really. From then on she despises him. But she has to learn to live with his constant teasing since he's a foreign exchange student living with her family. SS ET  
  
Chapter five: Old Friends  
  
Do you remember me? It was so long ago, but I remember you   
  
Do you remember the times we shared together?   
  
Or the secrets we confided to each other?  
  
Do you remember my face? I remember yours  
  
I remember a time we once knew.   
  
Do remember me? Because I remember you  
  
If you were to look at me would you smile or frown?   
  
Somehow I know it wouldn't be the latter, but still I wonder  
  
We were friends, that I know  
  
Even if you don't deem it so.  
  
Every time I read that poem I can't help but think of my oldfriend. Of course the times we share together weren't exactly fun- well for him anyways. And he never confided any secrets to me. I know he wouldn't smile at me since he isn't very fond of me, but hey that is the way things are.  
  
Anyway, I should probably tell you my part of the tale, right?   
  
It started on the first day of school. It was a strange day because Sakura was quite moody, which was very unusual for her. Not only that, but I also met an old friend once again. Well, I call him my friend, but he on the other hand doesn't favor the idea at all. No matter, his denial doesn't change the fact that we are friends.  
  
I should continue with my tale though. You see I was quite happy to learn that Tomoyo was in the same class as me when Sakura entered the room's doorway with a scowl on her face. She turned around and said something that was inaudible for me to hear. I assume whomever she was talking to answered because she then rolled her eyes in annoyance.  
  
And then I saw him- my old friend, Xiao Lang.  
  
To my amazement he was smiling. The stone-faced wolf was... smiling? It was nothing short of a miracle. He also seemed to be tormenting poor Sakura.  
  
"Will you just shut up? Stupid Li!" Sakura hissed as she walked toward her preferred desk.   
  
"Come now Kinomoto, you're always so cruel," Xiao Lang said dramatically as he sat down in the desk behind her's.  
  
"Where are you sitting?" Sakura demanded.  
  
"Behind you Kinomoto or have you not noticed?" he answered with a grin.  
  
She balled her hands into fists, "Maybe I should rephrase my question. WHY ARE YOU SITTING THERE?"  
  
Xiao Lang simply leaned back in his chair, "Only because it was an empty seat."  
  
Sakura opened her mouth to retort back to Xiao Lang. Unfortunately she didn't even say what she was going to say because Xiao Lang finally noticed me in the front, watching them.   
  
I saw him say something that sounded like, "Eriol."  
  
He stared straight into my eyes as if to say, "We are going to talk... now."   
  
Sakura followed his gaze and fell into mine.   
  
"Eriol?" She questioned.  
  
Syaoran seemed to ignore her, stand up, and then walk over to me. His actions seemed to annoy her, but she made no attempt to follow him. That didn't mean she wasn't going to try and listen to our conversation, which she did make an effort to do.   
  
"Eriol," he said once again when he reached me, his tone different than the teasing one he used with Sakura.  
  
"Xiao Lang," I answered just as easily.  
  
"We are going to talk," he said while suddenly exerting a presence, "Alone."  
  
He looked toward the door. I instantly understood what he meant. He wanted to talk without any prying eyes. (Those eyes namely being Sakura's.)   
  
"Lead the way," I said smiling.   
  
We both left the room. Once in the hallway Xiao Lang leaned against the wall and silently stared at the opposite one.   
  
"Well," I started after a moment of silence, "It surprising to see you here, Xiao Lang."  
  
He turned his gaze to me, "Same to you."  
  
I narrowed my eyes and smiled softly, "You were acting strange in there, dearest friend."  
  
He snorted, "Kinomoto is just easy to tease."  
  
My smile grew wider at his words, "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you like her."  
  
He glared, "Well, it's a good thing you didn't say that. Now isn't it?"  
  
"If you say so."  
  
Just then Tomoyo came walking down the hall. She looked beautiful as she briskly scribbled something in her notebook while she walked. Our eyes met as she turned to enter the classroom. I gave her a smile, not any of those scheming smiles I tend to have, but a real sincere smile. I felt my heart drop as she glared in response, pulled open the classroom door, and went inside without a second glance.   
  
I stood there for a moment silently wallowing in misery when my state of mind was deferred with a simple, "Humph."  
  
I looked at Xiao Lang. He raised one eyebrow and said, "And you say I'm acting strange."   
  
As though he intended to snub me as Tomoyo had just done, he walked into the classroom without looking at me.  
  
I stood stiffly for a few moments pondering what had just happened and laughed at myself. I must have looked pathetic. I slid open the door and entered the classroom. With new resolution I picked up my school bag and sat in the seat next to Tomoyo's desk.   
  
She scowled at me.  
  
Yes, love is definitely in the air.  
  
Blargh... Another chapter done... Sorry I thought I had posted it sooner... --;; I'm too flaky at times... Thanks to asn water! If it weren't for you my fics would be riddled with grammar mistakes and omitted words! You're too cool! :D  
  
Please review!! 


	6. What they Didn't Know: Yukito

What an Idiot!

By Time Warp

Disclaimer: I don't CCS

Summary: "Stop staring at me with your mouth hanging open like that." That's Syaoran's first words to Sakura. That's quite the way to make the ladies like you right? Not really. From then on she despises him. But she has to learn to live with his constant teasing since he's a foreign exchange student living with her family. SS ET

Chapter Six: What They Didn't Know

I never knew exactly what happened between the two of them. They were constantly arguing, teasing, and annoying each other. Though perhaps, I did see it coming... See what coming you ask? Well, I suppose I could elaborate, but I'd prefer that you find out later. I'm sure you know what I mean anyway. For now, I'll tell you about that time when Sakura needed someone to drive her to her lesson...

I remember it quite well. I was eating dinner at the Touya's house with them. Yes, I love dining with their family. Not only is their food very tasty, but also ever since Syaoran's arrival there hadn't been a dull moment. It seems that Touya and Syaoran had joined forces to tease and torment poor Sakura. I have to admit though it was comical to watch. And it wasn't as if Sakura didn't get to retaliate either.

Poor Touya constantly got his feet stomped on.

Poor Syaoran was constantly glared at.

Poor Sakura was always picked on.

Yes, the Kinomoto household never had a dull moment. And I, Yukito, enjoyed being around to watch everything unfold. During this particular event Sakura needed someone to drive her to her Tae Kwon Do lesson.

Oh, I forgot to mention this, but ever since her friend Chihauru convinced her, Sakura had been taking lessons every week for about a month. It was about an hour walk to get to the dojo and her lessons started at eight p.m. so Chihauru's mother usually drove them. For some reason though, she couldn't take them. So now they had no way of arriving to their lesson.

Fujitaka couldn't drive them nor could Touya. I consider them just like family so I volunteered to drive Sakura and her friend.

The night that she had her lesson she and Syaoran had yet another verbal battle.

"So Kinomoto, why exactly are you taking martial arts lessons?" he asked her.

Sakura, who had finished tying her white belt correctly, sarcastically replied , "So, one day I can beat you up for being annoying."

I couldn't help but jokingly reprimand her for that childish response, "Sakura you know you shouldn't say those things."

Syaoran grinned and added, "Yeah, plus you could never beat me up."

"Whatever. You look like a total wimp!" She crossed her arms, "I bet if you went up against any guys in a fight you would lose."

I watched as Syaoran leaned toward Sakura making their height difference very obvious.

He smirked down at her, "Well, that wouldn't matter because I don't prefer getting into fights. Either way, I'd still beat you, White Belt."

Sakura pulled into a fighting stance, "Let's see then!"

"No way, White Belt. I wouldn't want to damage your pretty face."

"Stop calling me White Belt!"

Syaoran then proceeded to dodge Sakura's front kicks. He taunted her by saying she was too slow. Even though it was amusing to watch I knew it was dangerous. So I decided to break up the fight, "Okay you two, that's enough. We don't want anyone getting hurt."

Sakura huffed and stood erect, "Fine, but just to let that idiot know, I wasn't kicking hard or fast. I wouldn't want to damage **his** pretty face."

Syaoran ignored the sarcasm, "White Belt thinks my face is pretty? I'm touched!"

Sakura glared and responded, "I would kill you for that comment, but I need to save my energy for the sparring."

The word sparring perked both Syaoran's and my interests.

Syaoran's expression seemed interested, but I'm sure mine was of worry, "You're going to be sparring? Are you sure that's safe?"

"Yeah, a different class from another dojo is going to come in and spar with us. And don't worry! We have safety equipment and the teacher will be there to make sure we don't hurt each other," She turned to Syaoran, "I'm sure you'll want to stay away from the sparring since you're a wimp."

Syaoran is a spontaneous person. That being said, I'm sure you should expect that his response was surprising- which it was.

He crossed his arms and cocked his head to the side slightly as if to be thinking then said, "Okay! I'm coming!"

His response mildly confused me, but I didn't mind. Of course, Sakura did. Despite her protests Syaoran came with us. And that's how all of us ended up at Sakura's Tae Kwon Do lesson.

Chihauru was talking to Syaoran much to Sakura's annoyance, "Why did you come with us again?"

"I just wanted to see you guys practice. I hear you're sparring with another class?" Syaoran answered almost indifferently.

Chihauru closed her eyes and I could swear I felt an aura of confidence rise around her as she answered, "We are. Sakura is a white belt and I'm a yellow. I'm sure I won't lose when it's my turn to spar."

Syaoran shifted his eyes to Sakura and he murmured something to her. I watched as she glared at him and said, "Just you watch! I'll win too, idiot!"

His answer was, "Shouldn't you be warming up or something?"

Sakura turned on one heel and began to stretch. I smiled at Chihauru when she gave us an apologetic look. She ran off to join Sakura as I turned toward Syaoran, "I'm looking forward to seeing the different martial arts."

Of all the strange things about that boy the one I found most peculiar about him is that he hardly ever leans against anything.

Yes, I know you must be thinking that I'm the one being weird now, but think about it. How many times do you lean against things each day? I know I lean against things way too many times to count. Now him, I've never seen him do it. He also never slouches. It's odd. I know that many people have good posture, but Syaoran never has to correct his. It's as if he were in the military.

Well, I know the reason for his good posture and lack of leaning on things now.

You see I found out why during that same night. It was quite strange actually. It started when the class that Sakura's was going to spar against arrived. Their teachers were an old man that went by the name of Lim and a younger man named Hideaki that was twenty or so.

Lim is an old man who has a very loud voice. So when he speaks (or maybe I should say yells) it's very surprising for people who've never met him before.

The first thing I heard him say was, "**XIAOLANG**!"

Imagine how surprised Sakura, Chihauru, and I were to see Syaoran turn to Lim and bow as though he knew the old man. Well, he does know Lim, but I didn't know that then.

Syaoran excused himself. Then walk over to a different part of the dojo to talk to Lim and Hideaki.

By that time Sakura's lesson was over and the rest of the students were leaving. (Just so you know both Sakura and Chihauru did win their sparring matches.) Sakura, Chihauru, and I watched as Syaoran and Lim began to speak in Cantonese. They seemed to be quite well acquainted. After a few minutes Syaoran motioned us over. We were confused, but still came.

Syaoran once again said something in Cantonese, but this time we all heard him say Kinomoto. Lim looked questioningly at us before breaking into a grin. We were all uncomfortable, but his smile enabled us to relax a little.

"So you are Kinomoto? It's very kind of you to let Xiaolang stay in your home! Your friends look nice too!" Lim said to Sakura.

Sakura was confused just like me, "Um... It's nice to meet you."

Lim bowed, "I am Lim! I saw the two of you spar. Very impressive! Keep up your training and you will become good martial artists."

"Thank you," Sakura turned to Syaoran, "How do you two know each other?"

Before Syaoran could open his mouth Lim answered for him, "That boy? Ha, I've known him since the day he was born! Before I moved to Japan I taught his family Gung Fu and other disciplines!"

Syaoran later told me that Gung Fu is another way to say and spell Kung Fu.

This perked Chihauru's interest and she asked Syaoran, "You know martial arts, Li?"

Lim once again answered for Syaoran, "Know martial arts? This boy has been training in different disciplines since he could walk! I bet you don't even remember not knowing martial arts, right Boy?"

Syaoran looked slightly uncomfortable at the time and he shook his head modestly saying, "It's just a family tradition..."

We watched as Lim seemed to chastise Syaoran in Cantonese.

Chihauru grinned slightly, "I'd like to see you do some moves, Li. Can you show us?"

Syaoran looked as though he wanted to object, but Lim already had Hideaki and Sakura's teacher setting things up.

So we got to see Syaoran practice Tae Kwon Do. And I must say it was impressive. I was awed by the way he moved. Even Sakura seemed impressed. Syaoran seemed to fly in the air while performing some kicks. In my opinion the most amazing part of this his demonstration was when he broke boards.

Breaking boards is always interesting to watch, but that time Syaoran broke three in succession, each with a different move.

The fist board he broke was with, what I was told to be, an ax kick. It basically looked like he swung his leg up and brought it down. That kick is used to attack the head or chest so that meant, Lim, who was holding the board held it above his head.

He broke the second board with a palm strike. When he pulled his elbow back, he used to break the board that was being held behind him.

All in all it was very interesting to watch.

So what Lim said to Syaoran was pretty surprising.

This is what he said:

"You haven't been practicing! Your movement has slowed. Xiaolang, you shouldn't fall into the habit of not practicing!"

Syaoran bowed and replied to him in Cantonese. Lim seemed annoyed for a moment and then said, "You keep your word, Boy! Or I'll have to whip you back into shape!"

Syaoran nodded and then said, "I will. It was good to see you again. I'll tell my mother you send your greetings."

Lim nodded and then said, "It's getting late. You all should go home now."

We heeded his advice and left after saying our goodbyes.

As were exiting the dojo Lim called to Syaoran, "I expected better next time Boy!"

Syaoran nodded and bowed.

The ride home was pretty peaceful after I dropped Chihauru off at her house. None of us talked much. I decided to wait in my car until Sakura and Syaoran were safely inside the Kinomoto household.

It was then I heard them talking as they walked to the front door.

"So you know martial arts?"

"That's right White Belt. That's why you'll never be able to beat me up."

"That still doesn't prevent you from being an annoying idiot."

Syaoran only chuckled slightly when Sakura said that. That was the first time Sakura didn't seem mad at him when she called him an idiot.

"So, are you hungry? I am and I'll cook you something if you want."

"Why should eat something you cooked?"

"Don't worry I won't poison you or anything."

"Fine, but it better not taste bad."

"I happen to be a good cook, Kinomoto."

"I'll be the judge of that."

As I watched them talk while waiting for Touya or Mr. Kinomoto to open the door I smiled. I knew despite the way Sakura was acting she was impressed. And I knew something else too.

Whether they knew it or not they were becoming friends.

Okay! Another chapter done! Thanks to my beta Asn Water. (Go read her fic. It's good) Anyway, please tell me what you think of this chapter!


	7. What was Missing: Meiling

What an Idiot!

By Time Warp

Disclaimer: I don't CCS

Summary: "Stop staring at me with your mouth hanging open like that." That's Syaoran's first words to Sakura. That's quite the way to make the ladies like you right? Not really. From then on she despises him. But she has to learn to live with his constant teasing since he's a foreign exchange student living with her family. SS ET

Chapter Seven: What was Missing

Xiao Lang actually did write to me like he said he would. Maybe Japan has some kind of strange air that was doing things to him since I knew he didn't intend to actually write unless I sent a letter first.

Something was going on.

I was going to find out just exactly what was happening in Japan and my chance to do so came up when our family donated money to a museum. In turn, they invited us to attend their charity ball for free.

That museum just so happened to be in Tomoeda and this couldn't have been some kind of coincidence. In my opinion, Tomoeda is a total hic town in comparison to Tokyo. I'm sure Auntie Yelan donated to that museum because a certain cousin of mine was living in the same town it was located in.

If there's one thing a person should know about the Li family it's that we're all filled with pride; especially my aunt. I'm sure that although she seemed like the epitome of calm she was secretly fretting about Xiao Lang. Not that I've ever seen her fret….

Either way I was going to see him so I who was I to argue? And I was going with Xiao Lang's sisters and Auntie Yelan. That fact in itself was a guarantee that the trip would be unforgetable.

I remember calling him to tell him of the news.

I counted six rings before someone answered the phone. And to my surprise (though now that I think about it, there was really nothing to be surprised about) Sakura Kinomoto answered.

She seemed distracted at the time though.

"Whatever, you jerk! I know I'm right and you're wrong! Shut up!" she said. She must have not known I could hear her even though she wasn't talking into the phone's mouthpiece, "Hello?"

I immediately disliked her. Who was she to speak to my cousin that way? At the risk of sounding old fashioned, I thought that she was a total wench.

"Yeah, hi, can I speak to Li Syaoran?"

"Sure, one moment please."

I heard her say, "Hey, it's for you."

His response to her was muffled, but then I heard a clear, "Hello?"

"Xiao Lang! Guess who?"

He used the same sounding voice with me, it was practically emotionless, verging on monotonous, "Meiling? Why are you calling?"

"Can't your favorite cousin call once in a while?" I teased.

"Who says you're my favorite cousin?"

It was too bad he couldn't see my scowl I bet it would've made him think twice about that comment, "Har! Har, Xiao Lang!"

His voice relaxed, "So, really, why are you calling?"

I chirpily announced, "I'm coming to find out your secret!"

I almost burst out laughing at his sharp intake of air, "Secret? What in the world are you talking about?"

I casually leaned against the wall; Xiao Lang's sisters were quickly taking up all my personal space, "You are're acting weird and I expect to find out why. Are you on drugs or something?"

"Idiot, what the heck are you talking about?" He reprimanded me, "You aren't even here and you're saying I'm acting weird?"

He did seem to have a point. What was I thinking? He didn't seem any different on the phone. Maybe he just decided to be more open? Wait… scratch that… NO WAY! If he wasn't acting weird then I'm the Dowager empress! Something is definitely going on.

His voice broke my thought process, "You're visiting?"

I nodded despite the fact that he couldn't see me, "Yeah, Auntie donated money to some art museum and we were invited to some ball."

I could imagine his face paling, "Mother is coming?"

"She sure is! Your sisters too! We're all coming to meet the family you're living with and see how you're doing."

He groaned.

The laughter I had been fighting hard to keep in finally burst out, "Yes, Xiao Lang, you are stuck with us no matter where you go!"

"Ha ha, very funny."

"I know," I said with a catlike grin, "Anyway, I'm just telling you, okay?"

"Sure, thanks."

"Oh yeah, Xiao Lang?"

"Hmm?"

I glanced at my four cousins, "Your sisters want to talk to you."

He groaned again.

I could hardly contain my excitement as we pulled in front of the large museum. The thought of food was far from my mind, although, like all proper formals they would be serving dinner later.

My other cousins seemed to be just as excited, if not more, about seeing their little brother as I was. Auntie Yelan sat calm and composed, just like always, but I could swear she was almost smiling. Getting to see Xiao Lang again was putting all of us in high spirits.

I guess you don't realize just how much you care about something until it's gone.

Fuutie, Shiefa, Feimei, and Fanren were all chatting excitedly as we entered the ballroom. Xiao Lang must've been trying to avoid the inevitable since we were supposed to meet at the ball instead of heading straight to the Kinomotos' house. Auntie Yelan stood as we waited for the Kinomotos, as opposed to the rest of us, she looked demure. Xiao Lang's sisters and I must've looked like the definition of impatient.

Sakura Kinomoto was the first person I saw. Of course, I didn't realize it was her at the time. It was not until Xiao Lang walked through the door and said something to her did I realize who she was.

I have to say that I was surprised. She was shorter than me and had soft looking brown hair that stopped right above the shoulders. Her eyes were a rare color- green. The lightly colored pink dress she wore was simple but elegant. The air of a happy go lucky girl surrounded her. All in all… she looked absolutely friendly. So… **She** was the spitfire that Xiao Lang wrote about? **She **was the telephone wench?

I had imagined a large ugly girl who was bordering on looking like an ugly guy. It didn't matter what she looked like though, I had long since decided that I would treat her like she was the lowest in the Hindu caste system; she would be an untouchable.

My confusion ceased when she scowled at Xiao Lang. Maybe she wasn't as friendly as she looked.

Auntie Yelan was ever calm when she said, "You must be Kinomoto Sakura. It is a pleasure to meet you."

My haze of confusion seemed to return when she smiled and said, "Oh! Are you Syaoran's family?"

The familiar calls of, "Xiao Lang!" soon gave me a sense of normalcy, if only for a moment.

My cousins ran toward Xiao Lang and surrounded him. I could vaguely make out his scowl.

"Oi monster, is the kid's family here yet?" an unfamiliar voice asked.

The voice belonged to Touya Kinomoto. Of course my dearest cousins immediately swooned when he entered the room. They ran over and barraged him numerous useless questions- poor guy. If there's one thing you should know about Xiao Lang's sisters it's that they love good looking things, especially if those things are men.

I finally noticed Fujitaka Kinomoto. He was a homely looking man with a kind smile. You would immediately feel relaxed when you meet him.

Sakura was quiet as she stood next to Xiao Lang. She even seemed to shrink away when a gazed at her. Good! That meant operation untouchable was working.

Xiao Lang introduced our families as I looked at her, "Mother, this is the Kinomoto Family."

He paused during the respective greetings and then continued, "These are my sisters and Meiling."

Nothing especially strange seemed to happen for the next hour. I mostly spoke to Xiao Lang. My cousins seemed taken with Touya Kinomoto and my aunt spoke to Fujitaka Kinomoto. This effectively left Sakura Kinomoto with nothing to do.

When it was time to dance, I quickly pulled Xiao Lang to the dance floor. I interrogated him on everything that had happened yet… he seemed distracted as he danced. I finally noticed that he kept glancing at Sakura Kinomoto.

Kinomoto was a poor sight to see. She sat at the table surrounded by our families, but still managed to look isolated. Once in a while Auntie Yelan would speak to her and she would reply respectfully and then return to looking utterly depressed. It was pitiful, but exactly as I planned her night to be.

But I never guessed that Xiao Lang would actually pity her. As soon as the song stopped he gave me what could only be called an apologetic look and went back to the table while murmuring a distracted, "Sorry Meiling."

This was just plain amazing. In my whole life Xiao Lang had never been openly apologetic about anything. If he were ever feeling guilty he would simply act normally.

Not only that, but why the heck did he pity Kinomoto anyway?

For a moment I wondered who in the world that strange pod person was and where the real Xiao Lang went to. But as he began to dance with Kinomoto it hit me. Xiao Lang must have changed. And this change had to have been due to her. It was nothing very noticeable; in fact it was entirely subtle. Yet as Xiao Lang led Kinomoto around the dance floor the slight upturn of the corners of his lips spoke volumes.

When Xiao Lang first left for Japan, I had asked Auntie Yelan why she was having him go in the first place.

Her answer was confusing, _"My son is very intelligent and responsible. He respects his elders and his family. Even so, he is lacking something very important. I hope that he will find what he needs in Japan."_

I hadn't understood what she meant when she said that, but as I watched them waltz I couldn't help but wonder…

Was Sakura Kinomoto providing Xiao Lang with what he lacked?

End Chapter

Well, many thanks to Anna! She must be some kind of miracle worker since she actually got me to stop being a lazy hobo and write. And then she made me actually make it bearable to to read. Hahaha... Now I must slink away in shame.


	8. Life's Lessons: Fujitaka

What an Idiot!

By Time Warp

Disclaimer: I don't CCS

Summary: "Stop staring at me with your mouth hanging open like that." That's Syaoran's first words to Sakura. That's quite the way to make the ladies like you right? Not really. From then on she despises him. But she has to learn to live with his constant teasing since he's a foreign exchange student living with her family. SS ET

Author's note: There is no sequential timeline to this story. Between each chapter a day might have passed or even weeks. It's just random recollections by random character of important things that happened. Of course, for the most part, each chapter comes one after the other in order of events.

Chapter Eight: Life's Lessons

It must have been by sheer chance that I had decided to cook steak for diner. This choice turned out to be both fortuitous and troublesome at the same time.

That day was quite hectic… Oh, I must apologize. I just realized that I probably seem quite confusing. Perhaps I should start over and speak with more clarity.

This actually happened a few weeks after the charity ball; Syaoran's family had come and gone, but not before impressing me beyond words. Yelan is the most elegant woman I had ever met. I don't know if she's aware of it, but her mere presence is enough to quiet a room. Her many daughters were energetic and seemed to get along Touya. I didn't get to speak to Syaoran's cousin as much as I had hoped, but from what I could tell, she was a very intelligent young girl.

The most surprising thing about Syaoran's family was the sheer size of it. Here in Japan, it would be tough have many children. Prices just seem to keep rising and the cost of living is atrocious. Syaoran later told me that his extended family is comparable to the size of a clan, so it is safe to assume that the Li family is very well off when it comes to money. It was a shame that they couldn't stay long. As it turned out, Yelan was the leader of a large family owned business back in Hong Kong, so they left just as abruptly as they arrived. She couldn't leave their business unattended for long.

For this reason, neither Yelan nor any of Syaoran's relatives were present to see what had happened. The truth is, I don't know exactly what happened that day, but I know quite clearly what had happened later at night.

That night would be remembered as one of my more restless nights and I clearly remember how it started.

I had come home after teaching at the university, only to be presented with a startling surprise.

It had been my turn to cook dinner, but before I had the chance to enter the kitchen I heard Touya's voice and immediately knew something was wrong.

"Look, I'm not going to get mad, so why don't you just tell me how you got it?"

"It's nothing; seriously, I don't want to talk about it."

Syaoran was a serious child and probably always had been. He was also brutally honest so the fact that he was withholding facts meant that something serious must have happened.

I entered the kitchen and was immediately presented with a tense scene. Sakura was at the furthest corner of the kitchen trying to keep her eyes on anything but Syaoran. Touya stood with his arms crossed looking down at the boy, a stern expression on his face. Syaoran seemed to be the most peculiar of the three since he was holding the steak I had planned to cook that night against to his face.

Not noticing my presence at all, Touya turned to Sakura, "And I guess you're not going to say anything?"

Sakura's gaze had finally stopped moving from one thing to the next, but instead of looking back at Touya, it focused on the floor.

A sigh interrupted Touya's intense gaze and Syaoran lowered the steak from his face, "The details are really unimportant… It's not going to happen again, so you don't have to ask."

I finally saw the problem.

Syaoran had a black eye.

In all the years I've lived that was the first and last time I had ever seen one and it was far worse than I could ever imagine. The term black eye isn't entirely correct in describing what it actually looks like. Syaoran's eye was, in reality, black and blue. It was also swollen to point that it seemed he could barely open it, much less see clearly.

It was horrifying sight, because by then I had come to see Syaoran as a second son. And no parent welcomes the sight of their child injured.

"This is troublesome… I think it's important that you explain what happened," I said as I made my presence known.

The trio turned their attention to me in surprise and silence filled the room.

Syaoran finally broke the silence with a reply, "It really isn't a big deal…"

Touya's snort was enough indication of the opposite.

"When you come home with a black eye and my little sister with red ones, I'd think that's enough to show that something important **did** happen," Touya shot back.

"Who did this?" He asked darkly, "I'll pound his face in for making Sakura cry!"

I shook my head and used my firm voice, "You'll do no such thing."

"Was this supposed to be dinner?" Syaoran asked as he held up the raw steak.

The blatant change of subject was enough to tell me that he would still refuse to say a word. I shifted my gaze to my daughter. She was still staring intently at the floor with a guilty expression. I sighed… she felt responsible for what ever had happened.

I knew not to push the subject any further and answered Syaoran's question, "Yes, it was."

"I guess I ruined dinner for everyone," Syaoran muttered and then continued a little louder, "I'll go buy something for us to eat."

"Hey! We're not finished here!" Touya called out angrily.

Syaoran ignored him, placed the raw steak on a plate, and left the kitchen. I heard the door shut shortly after that and knew he had left. The whole house filled with poignant silence once again. After a few moments of awkward silence Sakura looked up.

I could tell she was deeply shaken up by what ever happened as she tried to string a proper sentence together and uncertainly said, "Syaoran… that…"

My hopes that she would tell me what happened were dashed when she finally said, "He didn't take any money. I'll bring him some."

With that, she turned and rushed out of the house as well. Touya finally shifted his stance and gazed at me, "Which of us should bring them the money they both forgot to take?"

If it were not for seriousness of the situation I would have found this fact amusing.

"Why'd you let them go?" Touya questioned, "We could just cook something else. Plus we need to know what happened."

"Actually, they were supposed to get groceries today. I doubt they got around to that considering what happened… We wouldn't have any ingredients," I replied.

"Dad…" Touya grumbled.

"We can't force them to tell us what happened. They'll tell us when they're ready," I explained, "As much as we want to fix everything for our loved ones, we aren't always able to. And we shouldn't, otherwise they'll become too dependant. The only thing we can do now is support them and trust that everything will turn out fine."

Touya was silent, but I could tell he understood.

I placed a hand on his shoulder, "It's a part of growing up."

"I'll bring them the money," Touya finally said with a sigh.

"You invited Yukito to dinner didn't you?" I asked.

It seemed with all the commotion, Touya had forgotten. He frowned and with a tired voice answered, "I'll cancel."

I shook my head, "He's probably already on his way here. It'll be fine. I'll bring Sakura and Syaoran the money. You should wait here for Yukito."

Touya reluctantly agreed and I left to catch up with the two kids. It didn't take me long to spot them. Neither had gotten very far. Syaoran was walking down the road briskly and Sakura was jogging lightly to keep up with him.

"Can't you slow down?" She called out to Syaoran.

His only response was to speed up. Sakura let out a cry of exasperation as she broke out into a full run. She grabbed one of his arms lightly, "Slow down. You always have to make things harder than they are!"

Syaoran stopped abruptly almost causing Sakura to crash into him.

His eyes narrowed as he spat, "You're the one who always complicates things Kinomoto! Don't pin this on me. We both know this whole fiasco wouldn't have happened if it hadn't been for you!"

Sakura stopped and turned her gaze to the ground again. After a moment she looked up and whimpered a soft, "I'm sorry…"

Her voice became slightly stronger, "I'll do anything to help. I'll get you icepacks. If you need to see the doctor I'll go with you… Heck! I'll even go buy some raw steaks if you really need them."

Syaoran's angry expression slowly softened. He shook his head and questioned, "You really don't know what I'm mad about do you? Do really think I'm mad about getting a black eye? Don't you remember what Lim said? I've been doing martial arts my whole life! I'm used to broken bones, black eyes, and injuries. I'm not mad about that."

I saw my daughter's eyes cloud with confusion, "No, than what?"

Syaoran sighed.

"Why didn't you tell any of us that guy was pestering you?"

"I didn't want to worry any of you. If Touya found out, he would blow a gasket. And dad… he would be so worried… I didn't think it would escalate to that level."

"Why did he start bothering you anyway?"

"He was scaring Naoko at first… So I told him off…"

"So you were trying to be a good friend."

"Anyone would've helped!" Sakura shot back.

Syaoran crossed his arms, "Yeah, but anyone with common sense wouldn't have told him off."

"Then what should I have done?" Sakura threw up her hands in annoyance, "You're mad because I was being a good friend to Naoko?"

"Of course not!" Syaoran said as he rolled his eyes, "But make sure that being a good friend doesn't get in the way of taking care of yourself! Do you think Naoko would be happy to know that freak harassed us when we were getting groceries? Who knows what would've happened if I hadn't been there."

I was left reeling by this revelation. Someone had been harassing my daughter? It was enough to scare me half to death with worry. What had possessed Sakura to not tell what was happening? What had possessed some stranger to harass her and her friends? I remained silent despite the shocking information for fear of interrupting what was obviously an important conversation. As for Sakura, she was silent after he said this.

"Sakura…" Syaoran said softly, "You're a good friend. You take care of those you care about. But… if you don't take care of yourself you're letting everyone you care about down anyway."

"Syaoran I…" Sakura started.

Syaoran cut her off, "If something like this ever happens again tell someone. Anyone is fine, just as long as you do. We can't always be around, but we can still help. Allow the people who care about you to look after you sometimes as well."

Sakura nodded, "Yeah... I'll remember that."

An awkward silence settled between them and I realized I had been eavesdropping on their whole conversation. It was quite embarrassing since that isn't a polite thing to do under any circumstance.

Nevertheless, I decided to scold myself later and break the tension, "There you two are."

They both turned to look at me questioningly.

I held up my wallet and smiled, "You forgot to take some money; **both **of you."

I watched Sakura turn red at the revelation and smiled, "Let's go get our dinner together. Touya said that Yukito is coming over tonight."

They both nodded and we went to buy food. It was probably the best way to end such a hectic night. I was glad that everything had more or less worked out. And soon enough, things went back to normal.

Who knew that Sakura hadn't prepared herself for would eventually happen in the coming weeks?

End Chapter

Now the beginning of one of the things I can't stand. The obligatory long and somewhat annoying author's note. Skip or read, do as you wish.

Since some reviewers requested, the owner of each point of view is now listed. Someone commented that Meiling seemed harsh. I agree, but I also think that she was pretty harsh when she first met Sakura in the anime, and if not harsh, she was at least competative. So... hmm... maybe in some other story I'll portray her nicer side. Ah... but not in the one, sorry.

Another thing I'd love to address is the fact that Syaoran gets a black eye, yeah, indeed he gets a black eye! Gasp! As much as I love martial arts characters, no one is untouchable not even Jackie Chan or Bruce Lee, so yeah, Syaoran can get hit too. Ha, it's fun to see fics where he's so good that no one can touch him though. I love that, in fact, I should make a fic like that. But, I'm trying to be a little more realistic here. So yeah... black eye for Syaoran, uh yay?

Ah… another chapter bites the dust. One of the more challenging things about this chapter was trying to write it in Fujitaka's point of view. Considering, he's more of a side chapter it was hard to write chapter using my vague idea of what his personality might be like. All he ever seems to do is clean and cook in the manga and anime. But he's also very perceptive, so I hope that I did him justice. **Thanks again to Anna who changed this whole chapter from "Ye Old English" to modern speak**. Yeah, yeah, I speak and write weird :P

Hopely this wasn't too annoying to read. Only a few more chapters, stick with me.


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